68-33

Andy Pettitte deserves to smile after yesterday's effort. He is 68-33 in starts following a Yankee loss. In last night's case, the Yankees had lost two games in a row to a team that was 42-17 at home. With both Seattle and Boston losing, the Yankees had to have this game before embarking on a four-game series in Detroit.

Pettitte knew this. In seven innings, he allowed five hits and only one run on a solo home run. He also struck out five batters and walked one. He decided to show up after Mike Mussina's awful start the previous night.

On the season, Pettitte is 11-7 with a 3.69 ERA. He has never been totally dominant this season, but for the most part he has been consistent.

Considering the circumstances, this was arguably the Yankees' biggest game of the season to date.

The Yankees are 71-56 and sit five games behind Boston and 1.5 games behind Seattle with 35 games remaining in 2007.

(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)